


The Gymnast

by littlereddo



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, M/M, aokise - Freeform, self-indulgent character exploration
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-12
Updated: 2015-05-13
Packaged: 2018-01-12 02:53:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1181059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlereddo/pseuds/littlereddo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU where Kise is a ballet dancer and Aomine is the star of the school’s gymnastics team.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

Aomine’s form was wild and free, and the curve of his body strong with something fierce yet strangely graceful.

 

Kise had watched from the doorway, starstruck and frozen. Aomine had swung his legs around once and then again with a steady certainty. The sounds of his strong palms meeting the horse beneath him seemed deafening in the empty gymnasium. And just as Kise thought he had seen enough, he watched speechless as the other arched and lifted himself into the air so high he seemed to be flying. Kise trembled at the boy’s ringing laugh when the other dismounted from the pommel horse landing with not so much as a soft thud, feet together, chest high. 

 

For the first time Kise Ryota became aware of his own body, the way his leotard clung a bit tightly, the awkwardness of his long scrawny limbs, the softness of his hands and lips, and he forgot how to breathe.

 

 

\-------------------

 

 

“Kise Ryota,” she repeats, mechanically for the third time that evening on the rooftop.

 

“Eh?” Aomine grunts in annoyance and shifts onto his elbows. He half glances up at his childhood friend before reaching for his lunch.

 

“You know? The dancer? This has been the fourth time this week he's come around to the gymnasium during practice! I saw him at the musical last year. He dances oh so beautifully!” Her words fall on deaf ears as Aomine starts to unwrap an onigiri. Salmon. Not his favorite but he doesn’t mind. He tears at the wrapper ignoring the pointed look Momoi shoots in his direction.

 

“Ah,” Momoi sighs loudly into her knees. “He makes me want to learn ballet!”

 

“Your breasts are too big to do ballet,” Aomine says, biting into his onigiri only to be sputtering half a second later as Momoi’s elbow meets his side.

 

“Hmph. As I was saying, Kise Ryota,” Momoi hums and tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “He dances beautifully.”

 

“Dancing is for pansies,” Aomine says with his mouth full.

 

Momoi just stares.

 

“That’s really mean, Dai-chan.”

 

“It’s true. Ballet is nothing special.”

 

That was what he thought. Then he saw Kise dance.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm new to this whole writing thing...


	2. Chapter 2

“You there! Princess!”

 

Kise looks up from his desk. A boy with messy wild silver locks and sharp eyes towers over him.

 

“Um… you’re that new guy,” Kise begins then bites his lip.

 

“Haizaki Shougo,” the boy growls, annoyed. “You better remember it because I’m going to destroy you on the dance floor.”

 

“That so?” Kise muses, sparing the boy only a glance before turning his attention back to the magazine on his desk. He lazily flips a page, eyes skimming the colorful images of apparel and accessories. “I honestly never pegged you for the ballet type.”

 

Out of the corner of his eye, Kise sees the other visibly bristle, shift awkwardly in place before lunging at him, arms flailing hysterically.

 

“Like you know shit about me, pretty boy! I will take the lead role from you because all you do is prance around like a fairy!”

 

The other students in the room begin to take notice what with all the commotion and watches Haizaki trembling before Kise’s desk. It takes all of Kise’s willpower not to burst out laughing.

 

“You know what,” Kise says, giving Haizaki a pointed look. “You seem serious.”

 

“I like that about a person,” Kise continues, leaning forward in his seat peering up at the boy through his long eyelashes. Haizaki holds his breath and finds his eyes darting to Kise’s lips.

 

Haizaki swallows.

 

“I’ll see you at practice, Shougo-kun,” Kise grins, plopping back into his chair as the bell rings.

 

Kise sees Haizaki after school in the dance hall. Kise expects Haizaki to hound him with the aggressiveness he resonated with in the classroom but practice for the most part, goes rather smoothly. Now and then the boy would watch Kise intently but then he would quickly turn his head or make snide remarks when Kise catches him staring. During the break, Haizaki immediately approaches a group of girls resting in the corner and loudly starts chatting them up.

 

“So what do you think about the new kid?”

 

“Riko-san!” He watches the brunette lean up against the wall next to him, arms crossed. “Ah, he’s not so bad actually.”

 

“I think he’s a bit full of himself but the kid’s got potential,” Riko says. She eyes Haizaki from across the room with an intensity that gives Kise shivers. “His technique needs a lot of work though.”

 

“It’s really creepy when you do that,” Kise says, rubbing the back of his neck. Riko stares down at him sprawled on the ground.

 

“Do what?”

 

“Stare like that.”

 

“I’m just observing. That’s all. Which brings me to another issue.”

 

“What?”

 

Riko pushes herself off the wall and plants her feet in front of Kise.

 

“You. You’ve been slacking off,” she grounds out, voice stern. “Your sissones lack conviction – honestly sloppy at best, and don’t get me started on your pirouettes. These are all basic techniques, Kise-kun. Whatever is going on with you better stop now because I can’t have my lead dancer falling behind.”

 

Kise bites his lip and looks elsewhere.

 

“So,” she claps her hands together causing Kise to jump. “You are going to stay with me after practice every day this week and go over the routine until you get it right!”

 

“Eh! What! That’s so cruel, Riko-san! I have somewhere to be after this!” Kise scrambles to his feet, and chases after Riko who already begins to round up the other dancers. “I will work harder, I promise!”

 

From the corner of the room, Kise sees Haizaki snickering.

 

“I know you will, Kise-kun, because I’ll be there to make sure of it,” she smiles sweetly at Kise.

 

Kise gapes.

 

“Wait- Riko-san!”

 

“Alright everyone! From the top!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still don't know where I'm going with this but I've been meaning to post this for a while...!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to the lovely [Chifuyu](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Chifuyu/pseuds/Chifuyu) for being my beta! <3
> 
> This chapter is dedicated to [BeautifulThief](http://archiveofourown.org/users/BeautifulThief/pseuds/BeautifulThief)! Enjoy!

 

“So I think you should go watch him dance,” Momoi says simply, one day in between classes.

 

Momoi has casually slipped into Aomine’s classroom which wasn’t too difficult considering hers is right next door. The other students pay her no mind as she perches herself on top of Aomine’s desk despite Aomine being already half sprawled over it himself.

 

“Tch. Why the hell would I do that?” Aomine groggily murmurs into his arms.

 

Aomine knows who she is talking about yet the sudden mention of the boy is irritating and unwelcome. He didn’t want to have this discussion considering Momoi had dragged him to school before hours to attend the team meeting which he could have done without because everything is now a giant blur. Aomine rubs his temples to ease the pounding of his head having barely registered Momoi’s suggestion above all the classroom chatter. Aomine considers slipping away to take a nap on the rooftop but Momoi, being exceedingly merciless these past few days, has kept a strict eye on him.

 

“It’s not that difficult,” Momoi continues, ignoring him. “The music wing isn’t that far from the gymnasium. After school, there aren't a lot of people there anyway so you can easily pop in and say hello.”

 

Aomine groans and lifts his head.

 

“What is your problem lately?”

 

“Problem?” Momoi twists around, staring down at the boy.

 

“Yeah, you’re being more annoying than usual.”

 

“For your sake, I’m not responding to that,” Momoi says, turning back around to toy with her cell phone. Aomine hears her tapping on it and eyes her suspiciously.

 

“Did Imayoshi put you up to this?”

 

“And why would he do that?” Momoi says, mockingly similar to the tone Aomine used moments before.

 

The two needn’t say anything; they both know, perhaps too familiarly, just what Imayoshi Shouchi is capable of. It is Imayoshi who scouted Aomine for the gymnastics team and while he did agree to give Aomine some leeway with the practice schedule, he always seems to pay the ace back in the form of misery. In the back of his mind, Aomine knows Momoi’s recent unrelenting scrutiny must be Imayoshi’s cruel sense of humor

 

Aomine lays his head back down.

 

“Does he need a reason really?” He huffs.

 

Momoi giggles.

 

“Well that’s that,” Momoi hops off his desk with a smile when the bell rings. “The ballet club has rehearsal every day at 3:30 and it usually lasts a few hours so you can surely catch him if you leave practice a little earlier. Have a good class! Bye Dai-chan!”

 

Aomine blinks.

 

“Wait, what the hell?”'

 

For the rest of the week an uncertainty washes over Aomine and seeps into his skin, leaving him restless. He can’t pinpoint the cause but throws himself into practice to avoid dealing with it. He finds himself attending morning meetings, though he remains half-asleep through it all, and comes to practice early much to Momoi’s delight. Aomine thinks he’d hear the last of her nagging if he kept up with this routine, yet he can't decipher the expectant look she continues to give him.

 

”Hey, you done with that or what?”

 

Aomine is shaken from his reverie as Wakamatsu approaches him from the warm up mats. The blond raises an eyebrow and Aomine follows his fleeting glance to the side at the pummel horse he just dismounted.

 

“Oh, yeah go for it,” Aomine shrugs and steps aside. Wakamatsu continues staring him down.

 

“You okay? You’ve been acting a little strange.”

 

Aomine glares at him.

 

“Mind your own damn business.”

 

Wakamatsu immediately scowls, affronted, and ready to get in Aomine’s face when someone steps in between the two.

 

“Now now, play nice, Wakamatsu. You don’t want our ace off his game, hmm?”

 

“Sorry, Captain,” Wakamatsu murmurs but his fists remain clenched against his sides. Aomine swallows and levels his gaze at Imayoshi when he turns to him.

 

“Is something the matter, Aomine?”

 

Aomine swears he sees a twinkle in Imayoshi’s eyes right behind the lens of his glasses as the question leaves his lips. That knowing gaze sends every nerve in Aomine’s body on alert yet he freezes on the spot. The brunette seems to be staring right through Aomine and out the gymnasium door behind him. Aomine lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding.

 

“Um, nothing really,” he says. “Everything’s good.”

 

“Oh? Glad to hear it,” Imayoshi pats him on the shoulder as he brushes past. “Why don’t you lead the other freshmen in floor exercises then, Aomine?”

 

Aomine sighs and trudges towards some of the freshmen by the uneven bars, urging them onto the spring floor. He instructs them to start basic drills before stepping to the sidelines.

 

Out of the corner of his eye he notices Imayoshi eyeing him from across the gym or rather eyeing someone at the door. From his position, the stranger is obscured by the door frame but he sees a flash of gold before Kasamatsu Yukio, the third year vice-captain, comes flying to the entrance. He gapes when Kasamatsu jabs the blond hard on his side and again when the boy – and a boy it is, that much Aomine can see – doubles over, his bangs covering his long lashes.

 

Aomine catches the way the blond’s mouth curves into an unabashed smile, looking fondly down at the third year. One moment, the boy is ducking his head, embarrassed, and apologizing. And the next, he is gone.

 

Aomine braces himself against the wall, hands tingling with resurfacing anxiety. He remains still even as Wakamatsu shouts at him and half drags him to where everyone is gathering on the mats, and he thinks, “Oh.”

 

 


End file.
